monday, /o\ || disney world, \o/

[topaz119]

I’m not sure how or why it’s already Monday, but here we are…

On the plus side, I did manage to finish up that post-Star Trek Beyond Kirk/Pike sequel I’d been playing with (see my previous post), but the rest (ie, the mundane part) of my weekend to-do list is sadly un-lined-through. Priorities, yeah

Comments

[destina]

Oh my god this post made me so tired vicariously!!! And I say that as someone who loves Disney as much as you, seriously. They are adding a fourth hotel to Disneyland Resort and I am just crying on the inside, because I don't want getting a hotel there to become anything like WDW, ever. The charm of DL is that it's tiny, and that you can roll out of bed and walk 10 minutes from the bed to your first ride, and if I have to start competing for reservations and hotel rooms I am not going to be happy AT ALL. (Already I'm making stink-face at the dumb new fastpass system that's going to create havoc on rides that don't need fastpasses, whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.)

I say all that to say, I admire your methodology, and one of these days, I will study this post when I visit WDW again. *g*

[topaz119]

Oh, you know half of that is just b/c I can't resist a challenge & the whole system is set up like catnip for me. Plus, with the HoB, even the little discounts add up so that what's not really worth the hassle for 1 person becomes $500 for bank account.

But I should add the Here's What You Should Do If You're Not Crazy Like Me section, just to not scare people off. 😉

Like, if you & I were going in a couple of weeks, I'd go for a room at the Contemporary (thus giving you your 10 min to rides) or possibly the Beach Club (10 min to the Food & Wine Festival) & I might, depending on your level of Princess Acceptance, start looking for reservations at the castle. We could make the rest of it up as we went.

[kaelie]

Great balls of fire, I love everything about this post. We haven't been to WDW in years and years, but the first thing I do EVERY morning is check DVC, waiting for that perfect special, and I love learning about your impressively Virgo-like methodology, as I tend to get obsessive about planning myself. ;-)

BrotherB who, remember, isn’t even a fan of WDW, he’s just determined that we not drift apart with both parents gone. It’s an astonishing display of sentimentality from him; I hate to totally gouge him for it.

Awwwwwww, yes, and also LOL. :)

[topaz119]

Yeah, I do like checking those distressed points sales! Someday the stars are all going to align and I will swoop in and snag one of those over-water villas at the Poly for 70% off and you will hear me screeching with glee all the way across the country. :D

[jewelianna]

The dining thing makes me cry. Same with fast passes. I hate that you have to plan disney out so far in advance now, that you can't use weather reports or whatever once you're there to guide your plans. The Dining thing is particular kills me. That's mostly, though, because my sister works for Starwood Hotels which owns Dolphin and Swan, so we usually end up staying there which is cheaper than getting the room+food package.

I'm hitting up Wine and Food and MK for a few days with my cousin's family in November and the fact that I have to worry about getting fastpasses 30 days out is giving me hives. I'll probably end up missing the date and just standing in line.

[topaz119]

I go through love/hate cycles with it. On the one hand, yeah, it’s aggravating trying to sort things out so far in advance, especially when I know they’re going to be changing their open/close time right up to the day of (I don’t play the pre-opening breakfast ADR game for that reason-if the only reason I’m going for the 8 a.m. at the castle or BoG is to get in before the 9 a.m. opening, what use is it if they change to an 8 a.m. opening anyway.) On the other hand, having been the one who dragged teenagers out of bed so we could make the mad dash for the paper Fastpasses, and then ran all over the park to pick up the next ones, I am super-happy to get them all from my phone/computer (and know when the time is when I get them, as opposed to standing around waiting for the times to roll past lunch or whatever might be in the way

[msktrnanny]

Sigh. I actually miss the days of this kind of planning. (Being a single Disney fan only works in your 20's)

Do you think it'd be worth looking into DVc rental for a just me stay? Always seems like it'd be too dang expensive.

[topaz119]

I don’t think renting points for just you would work out-I usually end up somewhere between $270-$300/night (incl tax), which really only works if I’m already looking at having to get 2 rooms or I’m stuck in high season b/c our spring break is over the Easter price gouge & D’s team is playing in tournament down there (so we’re going regardless.) Having the ability to feed even a subset of my mob breakfast in the room saves a ridiculous amount of money and helps offset the rest of the price.

But on the single-disney fan front, I am getting an annual pass this year, so I’m available for random trips (the rest of my schedule pending, of course.) I think I might go down for the Romance Writers of America conference next July (it’s at the Swolphin.) Cross all fingers/toes/etc, I am pushing to have finished an actual novel by then.

[msktrnanny]

Okay, that confrence sounds so fun! And Swolphin! On the (granted, very short) 'haven't styed there yet!' list for WDW. I hear great stuff, but always seem to end up elsewhere. It's a great location on property and I love what rhey do for decorating at Christmas.

Would love to be able to Disney with you! What's the date range for your AP? I'm already socking away money for an AP for myself. Had them off and on for years. Someday I'd like to upgrade to the two park crazy premiere pass. Girl's got to have dreams,

You have no idea... My face when I read novel. Would you like my money now or later? Amazing!!!

[topaz119]

We've stayed at the Swolphin when the kids were playing chess competitively and the US Nationals were there. It's been a while, but they were nice. I do remember the Christmas decorations--they were very pretty even back then. I know they've been refurbing both hotels over the last year or so.

I'm activating my AP at the end of Oct for our F&W trip. I'll get that one, NYE, spring break and RWA off of it, plus whatever else I can drop in.

I will definitely be talking once I finish up the novel--I'm about halfway through the draft and will be just self-pubbing on Amazon/Kindle Unlimited. I'm tricking my brain into doing it by pretending it's just a fic AU, which is no stress, right?

[ramblinround]

Glad I saw this post too, as I've never looked into the DVC points or anything. We have access to a timeshare 5 miles away so we pretty much always stay there, but someday if I can score cheap flights I'd love to take my kids during the week when we have these random days off school in CT and stay on site.

[topaz119]

I have had really good experiences with renting DVC points--it's not *cheap*, but it does make it possible to stay at a upper-tier resort for the price of a Moderate & have kitchen facilities, too. Even if we're just in a studio, they have a microwave and toaster, which easily makes breakfast do-able (and we usually end up with at least one meal of restaurant leftovers.) In the middle of the week is a little less expensive, too, and sometimes they have distressed point sales, where the points have to be used quickly, so they discount them further. You usually end up at Saratoga Springs then (because it's so big and usually has availability right up to the end), but with how they've re-done Disney Springs, it is super-nice to be able to walk there.